College of Architecture and Environmental Design • San Luis Obispo, CA • Campus • $511/Credit (In-State, incl. fees)
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo offers one construction management program: the B.S. in Construction Management.
Program Pathways Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| B.S. | $62.9K in-state / $156.0K out-of-state | 4 years (8 semesters) | 123 |
Tuition estimates use Cal Poly’s 2026-27 semester tuition and mandatory fees for the College of Architecture and Environmental Design; out-of-state adds per-unit nonresident tuition and the Cal Poly Opportunity Fee.
- Why choose it: Cal Poly’s B.S. has held ACCE accreditation since 1978 and builds its core around separate management courses for residential, commercial, heavy civil, and specialty contracting, with more than 200 companies a year recruiting through the department, per Cal Poly.
- Trade-off: Admission is highly competitive at an impacted campus, and the college’s academic fee pushes in-state costs to about $7,860 a semester, so students should weigh the price against Cal State campuses with ACCE-accredited programs.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Credentials Offered | B.S. in Construction Management |
| Format | Campus, full time |
| Campus Location | San Luis Obispo, CA |
| Credit Hours | 123 semester units (2026-2028 catalog) |
| Internship | Not required; up to 12 co-op or internship units count toward the degree |
| Programmatic Accreditation | ACCE since 1978; last reaccredited July 2021, next review 2027, per Cal Poly |
| Software Taught | Building information modeling (CM 1280); specific software not named |
| Industry Certifications | None embedded |
| Transfer Pathway | Impacted major; transfer applicants must complete Calculus I, General Physics I, business law, and financial accounting |
| Tuition | $7,860 per semester in-state, tuition plus mandatory fees (2026-27) |
| Calendar | First semester-system catalog; Cal Poly converted from quarters in 2026-27 |
B.S. in Construction Management
The estimated tuition for the B.S. in Construction Management at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is approximately $62,880 in-state (123 credits at $511.22/credit, derived from 8 semesters at $7,860).
The program can generally be completed in about 4 years (8 semesters).
The B.S. in Construction Management sits in Cal Poly’s College of Architecture and Environmental Design alongside architecture, architectural engineering, landscape architecture, and city planning. The out-of-state estimate is about $156,029.
B.S. Curriculum
The major is 66 units, almost all construction management, with 30 units of structures, business, math, and physics support.
- Sector management courses (5 courses, 19 units): CM 3214 Residential, CM 3313 Commercial, CM 3314 Heavy Civil, and CM 4411 Specialty Contracting Construction Management, plus CM 1413 Jobsite Construction Management.
- Foundations (7 courses, 18 units): CM 1113 and CM 1114 construction materials and MEP assemblies, CM 1115 Fundamentals of Construction Management, CM 1280 Fundamentals of Virtual Design and Construction Management, CM 2113 soils, foundations, and temporary structures, CM 2114 MEP building systems, and CM 2239 Construction Surveying.
- Business of construction (4 courses, 10 units): CM 3334 Construction Law, CM 3335 Construction Economics, Finance, and Accounting, CM 4443 Management of the Construction Firm, and CM 4450 Integrated Facility Development, Design, Construction, and Operations.
- Professional and senior work: CM 4420 Professional Preparation, CM 4461 and CM 4462 Senior Project I and II, and CM 3317 and CM 3318 on sustainability and housing.
- Support courses (30 units): ARCE 1121 Structural Principles I, ARCE 3301 Introduction to Structural Systems, MATH 1261 Calculus I, PHYS 1141 General Physics I, ECON 2001, business law, financial and managerial accounting, and EDES 1123.
- Elective (3 units): one course from real property development, interdisciplinary practice, architecture, planning, or landscape architecture topics.
Cal Poly’s curriculum is management-heavy: the sector courses walk students through residential, commercial, heavy civil, and specialty work in turn, each carrying 4 units. Technical depth comes from two structures courses, soils and foundations, MEP systems, and surveying rather than an engineering sequence, and the only required math is Calculus I.
More curriculum details are available here.
You Should Know
- The 2026-2028 catalog is Cal Poly’s first under semesters; students who started under quarters follow conversion rules, and course numbers changed.
- The catalog’s major table lists CM 4420 Professional Preparation at 4 units, while its flowchart shows 2-unit sections in two terms; the course is repeatable up to 4 units.
- No major or support course may be taken credit/no credit, and the degree requires 40 upper-division units.
- Course descriptions do not name the BIM or scheduling software used.
B.S. Internship and Field Experience
- Required: No; the catalog allows up to 12 units of co-op or internship courses toward the degree.
- Recruiting: more than 200 companies a year recruit for internships, co-ops, and full-time jobs through the department, per Cal Poly’s catalog.
- Industry programs: practitioners teach in the classroom, students visit jobsites, and the Professional Advancement for Construction Students program connects students with industry associations.
- Hours and pay: Not clearly stated.
Cal Poly does not require an internship, but the recruiting volume means most students who want summer work can find it through the department. Students should plan internships themselves, since the degree can be completed without any field experience.
You Should Know
- The department’s placement and salary figures (95% placement and a $75,000 median starting salary) are not dated on its site.
B.S. Admissions
Cal Poly says the San Luis Obispo campus is highly impacted and selection to every major is very competitive.
- First-year students: admitted directly to the major through Cal Poly admissions.
- Transfer students (Fall 2027): must complete English communication, MATH 1261 Calculus I, PHYS 1141 General Physics I, BUS 2207, and financial accounting by the spring before fall entry; economics and a structures, surveying, or CAD/Revit course are desired.
- Course equivalency: California community college students can check assist.org; Cal Poly does not evaluate transcripts before selection.
Tuition
For 2026-27, a full-time California resident in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design pays $3,419 in tuition plus $4,441 in mandatory campus fees per semester, for $7,860. Nonresidents add $471 per unit, and nonresident undergraduates first enrolling in 2026-27 also pay a $4,402 Cal Poly Opportunity Fee each term.
| Item (2026-27, per semester) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition fee | $3,419.00 |
| College academic fee (CAED) | $2,409.00 |
| Student success fee | $550.22 |
| University Union fee | $480.95 |
| Health service and facility fees | $424.14 |
| Other campus fees (CP academic, ASI, IRA, ID card) | $576.69 |
| Total, in-state | $7,860.00 |
- B.S. estimate: 8 × $7,860 = $62,880 in-state (derived).
- Out-of-state: $62,880 + 123 units × $471 ($57,933) + 8 × $4,402 Opportunity Fee ($35,216) = $156,029 (derived).
Be aware that:
- The College of Architecture and Environmental Design academic fee is $519 a semester higher than the fee in Cal Poly’s science, business, and liberal arts colleges.
- The Opportunity Fee applies to nonresident undergraduates first attending in 2026-27; continuing nonresidents may not pay it.
- A $2 optional fee (SIRF) is excluded from the total.
- CSU tuition has been rising each year, so later years may cost more.
- Housing, meals, books, and course materials are not included.
At about $62,900 for four years in-state, Cal Poly costs more than tuition alone suggests because of its college fee, and nonresidents face about $156,000 once the Opportunity Fee is added. See Cal Poly’s 2026-27 fee breakdown.
Why Choose This Construction Management Program?
Best suited for students who want a pure construction management degree with deep sector coverage and a long accreditation record, and who can win a seat at a competitive campus.
Sector coverage: Separate residential, commercial, heavy civil, and specialty contracting courses let students compare the parts of the industry before choosing where to start, and the real property development and heavy civil minors add depth in either direction.
Recruiting: The department’s recruiting volume, more than 200 companies a year per Cal Poly, gives students many internship and job options without leaving campus.
Who should compare first: Students who don’t need Cal Poly’s name and want lower costs should compare other ACCE-accredited Cal State programs, and students who want engineering depth or a required co-op should look at construction engineering degrees.
Accreditation and Credentials
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission, which supports federal financial aid eligibility and credit transfer.
The B.S. in Construction Management has been accredited by the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) since 1978, per Cal Poly’s catalog, and the department says its most recent reaccreditation was in July 2021 with the next review in 2027. ACCE’s current directory was not checked for this profile.
The program embeds no industry certifications. Its value comes from ACCE accreditation and the department’s industry recruiting rather than a certification earned in class.